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Agricultural education and training (AET) institutions will play a strategic role in helping to prepare Africa’s rapidly growing youth populations for productive careers in agriculture and related agri-businesses. The purpose of this paper is to examine the magnitude of skills and youth employment needs emanating from high-population growth rates. It then explores how agricultural education institutions are responding to these challenges in four different countries at different levels of food system development: South Africa tier 1, Tanzania in tier 2 and Malawi and Uganda in tier 3.

Demographic and school enrollment data provide information on the magnitude of job market entrants at different levels of education while Living Standards Measurement Studies in the respective countries provide a snapshot of current skill requirements in different segments of the agri-food system. In order to evaluate AET responses, the authors have conducted country-level reviews of AET systems as well as in-depth assessments at key tertiary AET institutions in each of the four case study countries.

Growth rates in primary school enrollments are high in sub-Saharan Africa. At the same time, because of budgetary constraints, transition rates decline rapidly – about 40 percent from primary to secondary and 7 percent from secondary to tertiary. As a result, substantial numbers of primary and secondary school graduates seek jobs.

The case study countries are limited to four. Had more financial resources and time been available, researchers could have spread further afield and in so doing increasing the precision of the results.

Estimation of the number of primary and secondary school leavers seeking employment because of failure to proceed to the next level of education. Estimation of the level of education shares in the various components of the agri-food system.

Traces the poor agricultural production situation in Nigeria which gave rise to food insecurity, forcing the Government to take various measures to contain the resultant food scarcity. One of these measures was the establishment of Universities of Agriculture (Uni‐Agrics) with the specific mission to transform agriculture through training, research and extension in order to boost food production. After giving a brief history of the education and training of librarians in Nigeria, the author submits that such training is not suitable for prospective subject agricultural librarians. This situation has resulted in the acute dearth of such librarians, giving rise to an unhealthy state of affairs, whereby nonspecialized librarians are currently employed. A blueprint for the education and training of subject agricultural librarians is therefore given.

The purposes of this study are: first, to conceptualize entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education in agriculture; second, to highlight the role and necessity of entrepreneurship education in enhancing entrepreneurship; and third, to formulate relevant research proposals.

The quantitative data were collected through a survey (structured questionnaire) distributed to 412 agricultural enterprises in the region of Aitoloakarnania in Greece. The responses were analyzed using both descriptive and inferential statistical methods.

The findings of the study indicate that farmers/landowners have low levels of entrepreneurship education (only 30.6% have received relevant education) and thus have higher needs. The 50.2% of respondents declare that they are willing to pay in order to attend an entrepreneurship education program.

Existing entrepreneurship education research is useful in delineating the body of knowledge of what, when and how farmers need it, giving policymakers and researchers the opportunity to evaluate and build on research findings.

Given the shortage of identified research data, particularly at national level, on the role of education in agricultural entrepreneurship, this study contributes significantly to this research field, as the recognition of educational needs that affect the effectiveness of “agri-business” appears to be a crucial event for the future of agricultural entrepreneurship.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the career trajectories of 66 distinguished African agricultural professionals in order to explore how agricultural education and training (AET) institutions can better motivate and prepare youth for productive careers in Africa’s rapidly changing agrifood system.

Based on in-depth qualitative interviews with these role models, the paper explores the answers to two critical questions: How can Africa motivate its youth to consider careers in agriculture and agribusiness? How can AET institutions better prepare youth for productive careers in agribusiness?

Rural youth enter agribusiness careers in response to clearly perceived rural needs coupled with demonstrable profitability of modern agricultural and agribusiness opportunities. In contrast, urban youth embark on agricultural career paths in response to inspiring science education, particularly practical applications in biology, coupled with emerging awareness of the range of professional opportunities afforded by modern agribusiness and commercial agriculture.

The study relies on the basic premise that seasoned, successful professionals – from the private and public sector – can offer useful insights into ways of improving job preparation training for the youth of today seeking careers in the food system of tomorrow. The approach assumes that the role models have both the practical experience and forward-looking vision necessary to identify key elements of preparation likely to benefit future job market entrants.

This paper relies on primary interviews with distinguished agricultural professionals from 14 different African countries.

African agri-food systems are undergoing major structural change in response to growing urbanization, rising incomes and shifting patterns of food consumption. The purpose of this paper is to explore four major dimensions of this surprisingly rapid structural shift in African food systems.

This chapter synthesizes the six chapters and in addition discusses future implications for agricultural education and training (AET) in Africa.

AET institutions face multiple pressures as a result of these ongoing changes. High fertility rates have produced a youth bulge that currently strains educational capacity at all levels and places huge pressures accommodating 700 million youth job market entrants over the coming 30 years.

Countries vary considerably in a number of socio-economic and political dimensions making it difficult to completely generalize on each and every issue. Cross-country comparison to the level of determining which country is better than the other in many of the variables is difficult.

Synthesis of key parameters to consider in increasing the relevance of AET institutions in Africa.

Agriculture, since time immemorial, has been a major sector in reducing poverty, accelerating economic activities and source of sustainability of a nation. As most of the youth in the 21st century are targeting the youth's career in the non-agricultural sector, attracting and involving the youths in agribusinesses is the need of the hour. In this regard, the research tries to understand the awareness and involvement of youth farmers in agripreneurship in Western Nepal.

Using a structured questionnaire, data were collected from both primary and secondary sources. On the basis of descriptive and inferential analysis, the ordered logit model is employed in the study. The research is based on explanatory research design through identifying farmers' awareness of agriculture entrepreneurship from 324 farmers of Bedkot Municipality, Kanchanpur, Nepal.

Study findings have shown that agricultural knowledge with overall awareness is statistically significant. Ordered logistic regression indicated that sex has somehow influenced technical and entrepreneur skills while agriculture information highly influenced education and training. The result shows that agricultural training is still the requirement of one-fourth of the farmers, whereas another quarter of farmers need subsidies.

The study suggests that in order to enhance awareness, training, subsidy, market management and development program are widely needed. In the backdrop of declining agro-products and food security challenges, the study targets to offer an understanding to policymakers and stakeholders on addressing the dire need of agripreneurship among the youths around the world.

The study summarizes the state of knowledge of agripreneurship of Nepalese farmers, identifies emerging issues and policy implications and priorities for future applied research.

Graduate unemployment in agriculture is a serious challenge in Nigeria. Literatures suggest two arguments explaining this. First, the skills possessed by graduates are mostly incompatible with the needs of industries; second, universities produce more graduates than required. Focussing on universities as the source of change to address these two arguments, the purpose of the study was to examine the case of Ekiti State University agricultural faculty. The study investigated students' perspectives regarding their motivations for choosing agriculture over other disciplines, training received in critical thinking, innovation and soft-skills and their courage and willingness to undertake self-employment upon graduation.

The study adopted a qualitative research design to collect and analyse data from a case study. Data were collected through semi-structured individual interviews with 42 respondents from amongst the Ekiti State University final year B. Agric agricultural students that totalled 108. Seven of the respondents were purposively selected following recommendations from their lecturers due to their bright academic performances. Others were chosen using convenience sampling.

The study found that students preferred other science disciplines to agriculture and only ended up studying agriculture out of frustration of not gaining admission into their preferred fields. Students generally denied ever undertaking any training in critical and soft skills either as courses on their own or through the teaching methods adopted in other courses. Respondents generally expressed willingness to undertake self-employment but expressed lack of confidence to do so solely based on their little practical exposure and lack of access to basic resources like finance and land.

Only agricultural students of Ekiti State University were sampled; hence, the results is not generalisable to other disciplines in the university or to all Universities in Nigeria. Convenience sampling was used because access to all members of the sampled population at the same time was not possible due to different timetables for lectures for the various disciplines and non-readiness of some students to be interviewed for lack of interest or for commitment to other engagements.

The study practically implied that the theoretical training offered to agricultural students of Ekiti State University needs to be balanced with practical exposure, such that students gain enough confidence to practice what they have learnt upon graduation to earn a living.

The study revealed that there is need for curriculum review for agricultural studies at Ekiti State University in a way that will accommodate relevant practical trainings for students to make them suitable for either hired employment or self-employment upon graduation.

The author hereby declares that this manuscript is the author's own work and it contains, to the best of the author's knowledge, no materials previously published or written by another person. The author has no idea of an in-depth study of this nature that has been done to analyse the gap between the training received by agricultural students in Universities and the skills required to make them capable for hired employment or self-employment upon graduation from universities.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the purposes and current outcomes of Bachelor of Agricultural Science degree program in Austria. It identifies the ability of higher agricultural education (HAE) curriculum to meet its purpose by way of validating its current outcomes.

The study used survey research design to purposively sample faculty members and graduating students under the bachelor degree program of Agricultural Science at BOKU University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna. In addition to a self-administered questionnaire, key informant interviews were also conducted to validate the data gathered.

The Bachelor of Agricultural Science degree program in Austria aims to develop the student scientific understanding of theoretical and practical aspects of agriculture. The program also gears toward developing their lifelong learning skills. Analysis of the difference reveals congruence in the perceptions of agricultural education professionals and students regarding the intended and expected learning outcomes of the HAE curriculum. The findings affirm how the purposes and outcomes of HAE curriculum have been met successfully and their implications to BS Agriculture curriculum in the University of the Philippines. The findings are grounded on the firm foundations of Austrian higher education system from their strategic curriculum planning, design, and implementation to evaluation where all stages are done in consultation with the various stakeholders. Truly a community of dedicated members of the academic and administrative staff is a powerful tool toward curricular advancement in HAE institutions.

The subject of this study, in particular BOKU University, provides a concrete example that not only the University of the Philippines Los Baños but all the other agricultural universities around the world could learn from.

This study serves as a springboard for the development of new and innovative models of curriculum and instruction in the Philippines and other agricultural developing countries in the world.

This is an original study that provides discussion on the link between a developed country as a possible model and a developing country in terms of HAE. It helps the HAE institutions realize the ways on how their educational aspirations will turn into reality when it comes to fulfilling their role in supplying a well-trained and productive workforce for the agricultural economy toward sustainable agriculture development in one’s own country.

The paper seeks to introduce a process for assuring the creation of quality educational metadata based on the ISO/IEC 19796‐1 standard to describe the agricultural learning resources in the repository of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).

The paper describes the general notion of quality in education and in the creation of educational metadata. It introduces a quality framework based on the ISO/IEC 19796‐1 standard on quality management and quality assurance for learning, education and training. This standard consists of a reference framework for the description of quality approaches (RFDQ) to describe, compare, and analyze quality management and quality assurance approaches, which has been adapted to the creation of educational metadata in the context of the learning object repository of the CGIAR.

In order to achieve consistency in the description of learning resources in a repository through quality educational metadata, a standardized process for metadata creators is essential. The reference framework of the ISO/IEC 19796‐1 standard provides a flexible approach that allows the optimization of the metadata creation process while assuring quality of the descriptive information.

The paper proposes a standardized process for the creation of learning object metadata based on the ISO/IEC 19796‐1 standard, and makes suggestions on how to use the reference framework when adapting a quality model for educational metadata.

ISO/IEC 19796‐1 is a very recent standard with a flexible reference framework to develop a quality model in education and training. It provides a novel approach for organizations maintaining learning repositories that are interested in standardizing the educational metadata creation process, especially when multiple stakeholders are involved.

The purpose of this paper is to explore and identify the indicators of institutional barriers hindering the technology transfer training (TTT) process behind the technology adoption lag affecting the agricultural output in India through development of a scale.

Quantitative technique has been followed for data collection through a close-ended questionnaire scored on the seven-point Likert scale. The sample size was considered as 161; target respondents were farmers and farmer-centric individuals. Data were analyzed using an exploratory factor analysis technique.

Factor analysis revealed that there are three significant factors related to TTT process, namely, comprehension, customization and generalization, which are liable for institutional barriers in technology adoption by farmers.

The main limitation is biasness from both respondents’ end and interviewer’s end might exist during survey due to differences in perception.

The key beneficiaries from this research are the small and marginal farming community in India. They can enhance their productivity through an appropriate training process. Corporates will show interest in investment through the mechanism of corporate social responsibility.

Under this study, the factors of the institutional barriers from the farmers’ perspective are being introduced as a new research contribution, especially for the resource crunch area of Jangalmahal and other similar places in India.